Evaluating the environmental, health, and equity impacts of mobility hubs

The University of Southampton is offering a PhD position to evaluate the environmental, health, and equity impacts of mobility hubs in the UK. The role involves data analysis and community engagement to optimize these hubs for sustainable travel. Applicants should have a UK 2:1 honors degree or equivalent, with experience in qualitative and quantitative methods. Funding opportunities are available for both UK and international students.
Supervisory Team: Rich McIlroy

Mobility hubs integrate transport and community services to promote active, sustainable travel. Despite growing UK adoption, evidence on their impacts is limited. This PhD will combine data analysis and community engagement to evaluate current hubs and develop guidance on optimising them to equitably maximise social, health, and environmental benefits.

Mobility hubs are compact public spaces that integrate public transport, bike and e-scooter hire, car share bays, bike parking, seating, live travel information, wayfinding, and community services. International evidence suggests that mobility hubs can encourage a shift from private car use to active and sustainable travel, improving physical health, mental wellbeing, and environmental outcomes.

However, robust evaluations of their impacts remain limited. Over 25 UK local authorities have implemented or plan to install mobility hubs, yet research on how they affect travel behaviour is scarce.

This knowledge gap has important equity implications. Active travel uptake remains uneven across demographic groups, reinforcing social, economic, and health inequalities. We still know little about how different sociodemographic groups use, or could use, mobility hubs. There is also limited understanding of how design and location influence engagement and impact. To maximise benefits, we need to work with users and potential users to identify which service combinations and spatial placements best meet diverse community needs.

This PhD will use a mixed-methods approach, combining transport behaviour data analysis with qualitative engagement with end users and community groups.

Working with CoMoUK, the UK’s shared transport charity, and several local authorities, the research will generate robust evidence on how current mobility hubs perform and deliver practical guidance on how to design and locate them to equitably maximise economic, health, and environmental sustainability benefits.

Entry requirementsYou must have a UK 2:1 honours degree, or its international equivalent with experience of both qualitative and quantitative methods.

Fees and fundingWe offer a range of funding opportunities for both UK and international students. Horizon Europe fee waivers automatically cover the difference between overseas and UK fees for qualifying students. Competition-based Presidential Bursaries from the University cover the difference between overseas and UK fees for top-ranked applicants.

Competition-based studentships offered by our schools typically cover UK-level tuition fees and a stipend for living costs for top-ranked applicants.

Funding will be awarded on a rolling basis, so apply early for the best opportunity to be considered. For more information, please visit our postgraduate research funding pages.

How to applyApply now

You need to:

choose programme type (Research), 2026/27, Faculty of Engineering and Physical Sciences
select Full time or Part timesearch for programme PhD Engineering & the Environment (7175)add name of the supervisor in section 2 of the applicationApplications should include:

your CV (resumé)2 academic referencesdegree transcripts and certificates to dateEnglish language qualification (if applicable)Contact usFaculty of Engineering and Physical SciencesIf you have a general question, email our doctoral college (feps-pgr-apply@soton.ac.uk).

Project leaderIf you wish to discuss any details of the project informally, please contact Dr Rich McIlroy (r.mcilroy@soton.ac.uk).

The School of Engineering is committed to promoting equality, diversity inclusivity as demonstrated by our Athena SWAN award. We welcome all applicants regardless of their gender, ethnicity, disability, sexual orientation or age, and will give full consideration to applicants seeking flexible working patterns and those who have taken a career break. The University has a generous maternity policy, onsite childcare facilities, and offers a range of benefits to help ensure employees’ well-being and work-life balance. The University of Southampton is committed to sustainability and has been awarded the Platinum EcoAward.